“She takes a lot of riding, but she’s worth it,” said Paula Wood, Stephenville, TX, of Christys Blue Boon, the horse she showed to top the Super Stakes Non-Pro go-rounds with a cumulative score of 431 points (216 and 215).
Wood was one of 61 riders to advance to today’s Non-Pro Semi-Finals with scores of 420 and above.
“She hasn’t won a lot, but we haven’t really been anywhere much,” said Wood of her Duals Blue Boon daughter. “We had to wait on her because she’s kind of immature-minded.”
Wood also qualified for the Super Stakes Classic Non-Pro finals riding Duallys Fever, by Dual Pep.
Bonnie Martin, Las Vegas, NV, was the high-scoring rider from the second go-round with 217.5 points, and earned the secondhighest cumulative score of 430.5 points on Light N Lindy, by Light N Lena.
“It’s been a lot of fun showing her this time because the last time I showed her was at the (NCHA) Futurity and we didn’t have much luck (in the first go-round) and didn’t have an opportunity to be a team,” Martin said.
Martin and her husband, Frank, show primarily on the West Coast, where trainer Russ Miller keeps some of their horses.
Phil Hanson, who is based in Weatherford, TX, trained Light N Lindy, as well as Rubys Royal CD, by CD Royal, who Bonnie qualified for the Super Stakes Classic Non-Pro Finals.
“Phil’s program is the same for every horse,” said Martin. “I ride two-year-olds at home and enjoy doing that. But when I get to a certain point, I send them to Phil and have him evaluate them and go from there.”
Becky Elliott, Estell, SC, marked 217 points, the second-highest score from the second go-round, riding Halos Rey, by Dual Rey.
Elliott has been a finalist in seven NCHA Super Stakes events in the past, including a fourth-place finish on Show Biz Ben in the 2005 Super Stakes Non-Pro.
“He feels real trained and lets you use your legs on him a lot,” said Elliott of Halos Rey that she purchased from Jerry Durant and who had been trained by Dustin Mitchell.
Wade Rust, Gordon, TX, earned 216.5 points and a cumulative score of 429 riding Sisters My Brother, owned by Becky Elliot’s daughter and son-in-law, Elizabeth and Skip Queen, and a full brother to Sister CD, the leading active all-time money earner.
“I tried a lot of horses looking for a 4-year-old,” said Rust, who purchased the CD Olena-sired son three weeks ago from Marco Sacchetti of Italy, through Paul Hansma, who trained Sisters My Brother, as well as Sister CD.
“When I tried him the first time, everything I did he responded to,” Rust added. “He went where I wanted him to go and he understood what I wanted.” Rust placed ninth in the 2009 NCHA Super Stakes Non-Pro Gelding Stakes riding Ichabods A Player.